Opinions on Sugar Free Desserts

[Skorpora]

Hello CC friends. I have just been diagnosed with pre-diabetes. I have seen the sugar free desserts on previous cruises, but I have never tried any of them. :p Are they any good? Does anyone know what type of artificial sweeteners are used? Any nasty aftertaste? :confused:

[Loreto]

Hello CC friends. I have just been diagnosed with pre-diabetes. I have seen the sugar free desserts on previous cruises, but I have never tried any of them. :p Are they any good? Does anyone know what type of artificial sweeteners are used? Any nasty aftertaste? :confused:

 

I have ordered them because they looked good (and were!) not because I couldn't choose anything else. They tasted delicious to me.

 

Karen

[OHCruiser]

and I've tried them because they looked good, and they weren't, and I thought they were positively awful...............

 

Tastes differ so greatly.

[pammypoo]

While most of the sugar free desserts taste good, keep in mind that refined carbohydrates (white flour) raise your blood sugar just as much as sugar. As a diabetic I find meals on HAL to be a delicious minefield. There are too many courses, and the portions are just too large. We always get assigned seating so that I can introduce myself (and my food requirements) not only to the waiters but also the maitre'd. That way, I can get reduced portions, and help in deciding what to order. I often just ask the waiter to serve what looks good that I can eat, and have never been steered wrong.

[Krazy Kruizers]

I tried the black forest cake one time -- horrible.

I believe that they read as "No Sugar Added".

[Mtn2Sea]

I tried the black forest cake one time -- horrible.

I believe that they read as "No Sugar Added".

 

This just shows how taste can be so personal. I normally get the sugar free Black Forest cake, although I didn't on my last cruise because something was more tempting that evening. I have noticed some of the desserts have become somewhat tasteless, particularly those in the Lido.

[kelleherdl]

Good topic

 

I have been extremely successful health-wise going virtually no-card (~25 grams carbs per day) so dessert can really screw things up. What do the dessert menus contain these days? We will be on the NA in 5 weeks. To give you some idea at home I normally have sugar-free gelatin or sugar-free pudding made with heavy whipping cream. Does 'Atkins' even mean anything to the HAL galleys and servers?

 

We have not cruised since we changed our diets so I never ever bothered to look before.

 

Dennis

[Krazy Kruizers]

Good topic

 

I have been extremely successful health-wise going virtually no-card (~25 grams carbs per day) so dessert can really screw things up. What do the dessert menus contain these days? We will be on the NA in 5 weeks. To give you some idea at home I normally have sugar-free gelatin or sugar-free pudding made with heavy whipping cream. Does 'Atkins' even mean anything to the HAL galleys and servers?

 

We have not cruised since we changed our diets so I never ever bothered to look before.

 

Dennis

 

 

Menus from our Nieuw Amsterdam cruises:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1946788&highlight=menus

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1947089&highlight=menus

[TiogaCruiser]

I believe that they read as "No Sugar Added".

 

I believe you are correct. None added. Many of those items contain sugar(s) and still break down to carbohydrates.

 

I got into a chocolate something (cake like from a cupcake type pan) that was out of this world and my absolute favorite on my last cruise. It appeared 3 times on my last cruise. (And I made it disappear more than that ;) )

[kelleherdl]

Thanks much for the menus link. Very helpful.

 

Dennis

[POA1]

Good topic

 

Does 'Atkins' even mean anything to the HAL galleys and servers?

 

We have not cruised since we changed our diets so I never ever bothered to look before.

 

Dennis

 

We usually shoot for 30-40g of carbohydrates each day. We usually do room service breakfast. They'll bring potatoes and toast 9 times out of 10, so we either take a nibble or just leave the starch untouched.

 

Lunch is easy in the Lido. You can just grab proteins & salads. You can also get cooked to order burgers w/o buns.

 

Dinner in the main dining room is always the hardest meal. It's pretty easy to get double protein. You just have to avoid the carb laden sides, breads and desserts. And wine :-(

 

The Pinnacle is easy as long as you don't order sides.

 

You will probably "puff" up a little, but it's water weight. Once we get home, we found it comes off about as fast as it went on.

[kelleherdl]

We have a Neptune Suite so breakfast will be fine for me. I always eat in the Pinnacle Grill. All the 4-egg omelets, sausage and bacon I can eat :). You are correct it is the Manhattan Dining Room in the evening that will be the challenge. We choose late-fixed so that we do get the same servers. I may just go with filling up with double protein and just skip the uncertainty of what is in the desserts. :( This will be our first HAL cruise without bread pudding.

 

Dennis

[RuthC]

I find the no sugar added desserts very good, for the most part. Frequently they are better than the regular desserts.

I particularly like the no sugar added puddings in the Lido at lunchtime. Delicious. :D Some of the ice creams are tasty, too.

[Skorpora]

Thank you for all your helpful replies! I have been on a medically supervised low sugar/salt diet for about 6 months, and I have lost 30 pounds. I really want to stick as closely to my diet as possible, but if the carb content of the desserts is too high, sugar free is a bit pointless. Thanks again everyone :)

 

 

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[rwams]

I find the no sugar added desserts very good, for the most part. Frequently they are better than the regular desserts.

I particularly like the no sugar added puddings in the Lido at lunchtime. Delicious. :D Some of the ice creams are tasty, too.

 

I agree with you Ruth C you were able to say exactly what I was thinking. Thank You.

 

Rick

[POA1]

This will be our first HAL cruise without bread pudding.

 

Dennis

 

It's really a matter of picking your battles. We occasionally split a dessert & I had a few spoonfuls of bread pudding. You just have to be careful to watch for hidden carbs in sauces, etc. Like I mentioned, any weight gain was water and it came off within a week.

[Homosassa]

My diabetic sister loves the sugar free cheese cake. She made a comment to one of the chefs on a cruise that she was disappointed that the cheesecake had not made an appearance on the menu.

 

The chef told her, "We can make that for you" and took her name. cabin number and dining time.

 

The cheese cake was available for her at any meal in the buffet or MDR.

[Typhoon1]

I am not diabetic, but had been told the sugar free peanut butter mousse was really good. I gave it a try and couldn't tell it was sugar free. I had it several times after that. In recent years, I haven't seen it offered.

[Straitaway]

I found that there was very little in the way of low carb deserts. The "no sugar added" vanilla ice cream was also no fat and it tasted nasty. I couldn't bring myself to try another flavor. All of the "no sugar added" pastries and deserts were loaded with other carbs. The wait staff have no idea what a carbohydrate is, so no point in trying to explain. Next time I go I'm going to put in a standing order for fresh berries with heavy whipping cream. I think that is something that they will be able to do and it would be nice to be able to eat desert with the rest of the table.

[ksqueak]

Hello CC friends. I have just been diagnosed with pre-diabetes. I have seen the sugar free desserts on previous cruises, but I have never tried any of them. :p Are they any good? Does anyone know what type of artificial sweeteners are used? Any nasty aftertaste? :confused:

 

 

I'm diabetic and have eaten the sugar free deserts for years. In the dining room I have enjoyed every dessert I tried. The lido was a different story. I thought the "gelatin" ones, including things like mousse were gummy. There is always a sugar free ice cream so that became my lido go-to dessert.

[donaldsc]

They were better than no desert at all.

 

DON